Unravel
by alwayswriting
Summary: AU fic: Centers around Logan, Rogue, Jean, Scott, Bobby, and John.
1. One

Unravel

She looked at her hands and wondered how she came to have so much power. Power that she was afraid of. Power that made others afraid of her.

"Hey, kid, you daydreaming again?"

She looked up at the sound of his voice. He was leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed at his chest. She eyed his white T-shirt and blue jeans. How normal it looked, yet underneath the T-shirt and the jeans was something extraordinary.

He came in closer when she didn't answer him. His eyes filled with concern. "Want some company?" He sat down next to her without waiting for a reply.

"I was just thinking, that's all," she said.

"About anything in particular?" he said.

She glanced outside the window. "Life."

"Yeah, it sucks, doesn't it?" He was glad to see her respond with a small smile.

"It's scary," she said softly. "My life, our lives…it's not like anyone's else's, you know?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I know."

"You think we'll be okay here?" she said.

He sighed. It hadn't been that long ago when they both arrived to the school. "I think we'll be okay."

Her hand inched towards his, but she didn't make a move for it, fearful of the result. She ached for some kind of contact with anyone. A sign of support, a sign of comfort. 

"Why's that?" she said.

"You watch my back, and I'll watch yours, kid," he said.

"Where are they?" Storm asked as she entered the main room.

"They're talking in the next room," said the Professor. He turned to look at Scott, Jean, and Storm. "She's afraid."

"Of us?" Scott asked.

"Of herself," the Professor said.

"We can help her," Jean said. "We can slowly integrate her with the other students so it won't be so overwhelming."

"What about him?" Scott asked. "Logan?"

"He seems to want to help the girl," the Professor said. "He wouldn't want to leave the school yet."

"Well, what can he do?" Scott said. "Teach art class?"

The Professor frowned at him.

"I'm sorry, Professor, but I don't trust him," Scott said.

"It's not about trust, Scott," Jean said. "It's about helping them."

Storm nodded. "Yes, Scott, they need to know that we are on their side because--"

"Because they're mutants," said Scott.

"Because they are one of us," Storm said.

Rogue walked outside and breathed in the fresh air. The sky was clear and the breeze gentle. She tucked a piece of her dark hair behind her ear just as a basketball came bouncing her way.

"Hey." A teenage boy ran after the ball. 

Rogue couldn't help but notice his icy blue eyes.

The boy picked up the ball and smiled at her. "I'm Bobby."

"Rogue," she said. "I mean, Marie."

"So, which one is it?" Bobby said. "Rogue or Marie?"

"Marie."

"That's a pretty name," he said.

She blushed.

"Hey, Bobby, what's taking you so long?" Another teenage boy came over to them. He had dark hair and eyes. He spotted Rogue and smiled at Bobby. "Oh."

"Well, see you around, Marie," Bobby said.

Rogue watched the two boys go back to the basketball court. She was still blushing.

Logan paused outside a door way and watched the redheaded doctor read. His eyes traveled up her body and stopped as their eyes made contact."Logan," Jean said. " I didn't see you come in."

"Most people don't," he said.

"You usually like to sneak up on people?" she said.

He raised an eyebrow. "Depends on the person." He gestured to the book in her hands. "What are you reading?"

"_I Am Legend _by Richard Matheson," Jean said. "I'm not usually into horror novels, but this one is different."

"How so?"

"Well, it's about the entire world being turned into vampires except for one man," Jean said. "He's the last human left and he has to fight to survive."

"Why does he have to?" Logan asked.

"What do you mean?"

"If he's the last human left, why does he want to fight to live in a world that's no longer his?"

Jean looked thoughtfully into his eyes. For a moment, she saw him soften. "It's about hope. Hope is keeping him alive."

"Jean."

They turned to see Scott walk in the room. His red glasses looked at Logan and then to Jean.

"Scott." Jean got up and went beside him. "Logan and I were just talking."

Logan nodded. "Yeah, that's all."

Scott looked back at Logan. "Jean, the Professor would like to see us in his office."

"Alright." Jean grabbed his hand and left with him.

Logan watched them go. 

Bobby watched the basketball go right through the net. "I win."

John caught the ball and bounced it on the concrete. "Rematch?" He began to circle Bobby.

"Come on, John," Bobby said. "We have to get ready for dinner."

John threw the ball at Bobby. Bobby looked at him surprisingly. 

"What was that for?" he asked.

"I saw how you were looking at that girl," John said.

"What girl?" 

"The one you were talking to earlier," John said.

Bobby tossed the ball back to John. "So?"

John began to dribble the ball again. He remained silent.

"What's your problem?" Bobby said.

"I heard things about that girl," John said. 

"What kind of things?"

"She steals powers from other mutants," John said.

Bobby shook his head. "Whatever." He began to walk away.

"She does," John said watching him leave. 

He turned back to the basket and shot the ball. It slowly circled around the rim before going through the net.

"Guess what?" Her eyes looked shyly into his.

"What?"

"I met some kids today."

"Oh, yeah?" He leaned back in his chair and put his boots up on the table. "Did they try to take your lunch money or anything?"

She laughed. "No. They were actually nice."

"That's good to hear," he said. "You should start making some friends."

"What about you?"

"What about me?"

"Did you make any new friends today?"

He frowned. "No, not today."

"Well, you know what?" she said smiling.

He loved seeing that smile of hers. "What?" 

"You already have a friend."

"Yes, I do." Damn that smile. 

In the middle of the night, Rogue woke up. She was having nightmares again. She glanced at the bed next to her. Jubilee was still sleeping. She quietly put on her robe and left the bedroom. She made her way down the stairs when she saw him.

"Logan?"

He turned in the dark hallway. "What are you doing up?"

"I had a bad dream," she said.

"Yeah, me too," he said.

They went into a room. He watched her wrap her arms around herself. He went to comfort her, but she moved from him.

"Don't," she said.

"I don't care about that, you--"

"I care, okay?" She walked over to the window and looked out. "No one can ever touch me."

"Rogue, listen to me, you can't do this to yourself," he said. "You can't shut yourself out from people."

She looked back at him. "Why? You do it pretty well."

She got him there. He walked over and looked up at the moon with her. "So, do you want to tell me about your dream?"

She shook her head. "I just want to forgot them."

"Same here," he said, "but it doesn't matter. As soon as I close my eyes, I see it."

Her dark eyes looked up at him. "See what?" 

Logan's mind immediately flashed to the hazy images of shadows and pain. Images of a past that he could not recall.

She was still waiting for a response.

"Nothing." He cleared his throat. "How about we get something to eat? I think there's some pizza we can heat up."

The Professor was wide-awake as Logan and Rogue went into the kitchen downstairs. He sat in his wheelchair with his hands folded in his lap. A moment ago, something trigged in his head. A feeling, a thought.

Things were about to change.

Rogue sat under the tree with her book. She was wearing a black dress with matching gloves. Her feet were tucked under her as she read.

"Hey."

She looked up at the boy. John. 

"Hey," she said.

"Can I sit down?" he asked.

"Sure."

He sat down and looked at her curiously. 

She felt his eyes on her. "What?"

"You look sad," he said. He did not mean it to be rude and Rogue did not think so for his tone was gentle and filled with understanding.

John raised his hand and showed her a lighter. A red flame appeared. She watched as the flame seemed to jump from the lighter and onto his hand. He looked at her reaction; she seemed to be in awe. He twirled his hand and the flame moved with it as though it was dancing for her. She smiled.

Suddenly, the flame turned into ice and fell to the ground. They turned to see Bobby with his hand raised.

"Why did you do that for?" John asked madly.

Bobby lowered his hand. "Someone could have been hurt."

"I wasn't doing anything wrong," John said.

"You know better than to use your powers like that," Bobby said.

"Like what?"

Rogue watched as the two boys faced each other. One's icy blue eyes equally at level with the dark flames of the other. She stood up. "Stop it."

Bobby and John seemed to snap out of it and stepped back.

"Come on, John, lets go inside." Rogue grabbed her book and turned to go.

John smiled at Bobby as if telling him that this time he was the winner. He followed Rogue inside.

Scott woke up to the bed shaking. He looked over at Jean, who was tossing in her sleep. "Jean." He went to touch her when he went flying across the room. He leaned against the wall and looked up at the bed. She was sitting up in bed crying.

"I'm sorry, Scott," she said sobbing. 

He got up and went to her. His arms wrapped around her. "It's okay, baby, it's okay." He rocked her gently as she cried on his shoulder.

"The dreams are getting worse." Scott's back was facing the Professor as they met in the office. "Last night, she knocked me across the room. I want to help her, Professor, but I feel like I can't."

The Professor listened to him and sighed. "Jean's changing."

"Changing?" Scott turned to the Professor. "How?"

"Her powers are growing," he said.

Scott frowned. "There's more to that, isn't there?"

"Just stay by her side, Scott, that's all I can say."

"Hey." She came bouncing into the room, quite a difference from the last time they talked.

"Hey," he said with amusement.

"Wanna go on a mission with me?"

He lowered his voice. "Like a top secret mission?"

She leaned in closer. "Yup, only you and me know about it."

"Then, count me in," he said.

"Great," she said. "I need a ride to the mall."

_Click-click. Click-click. Click-click._

John turned the lighter on and off as he laid on his bed. His eyes stared at the ceiling. He could hear the rest of the students outside. Today he wanted to be alone.

"Hey, John, can we talk?" Bobby stood in his door.

"Okay," he said without looking up.

_Click-click. Click-click. Click-click._

Bobby walked in and stood next to his bed. "Sorry about yesterday. I didn't mean anything by it."

"Yeah, okay."

"Really, I'm sorry."

"Yeah, okay."

_Click-click. Click-click. Click-click._

"Do you wanna play some ball?" said Bobby.

"I don't feel like it," John said.

"Alright." Bobby started towards the door. "We're okay, right?"

"Yup."

Once Bobby was gone, John sat up. 

_Click._

He stared at the flame.

Logan hated crowds, or maybe he just hated people. He walked side by side with Rogue as she shopped. "I need to buy my own clothes," she had told him. "I'm getting kind of tired of borrowing Jubilee's clothes." So here they were, in between Old Navy and the Gap. 

"You like this?" She raised a red shirt to her chest. 

"Sure, kid." He tried to ignore the looks they were getting from other shoppers. 

"I'm gonna try this on," she said going to the dressing room.

Logan followed and waited for her outside the room. He glanced around the store. Two teenage girls were staring at him.

"Look at his hair," one said.

"What a freak," said the other.

They weren't trying to keep their voices down either.

He sneered at him and they turned away. He chuckled.

"Logan?" 

He looked up at Rogue and was caught off guard at the sight. Her long dark hair fell off her shoulders and onto her back. The dark blue dress fit her body, showing off every curve. Her hands were still wearing the black gloves. 

"What do you think?" she said. She twirled around in front of him.

"It's nice," he said. His eyes continued to stare.

_Stop it, Logan, she's only a kid._

"Yeah?" She admired herself in the 3-way mirror. "I think I like it too." 

"Hey!"

They turned to look at the saleswoman and a teenage girl in the next dressing room.

"Hey!" The saleswoman grabbed onto the girl. "I saw you take that shirt!"

The blonde girl pushed the saleswoman off her and ran towards Rogue. She grabbed her and whipped out a pocket knife from her coat. "Stay away, or I'll cut her!"

Logan's eyes filled with fear as the girl moved the blade to Rogue's neck.

The girl saw Logan move to her. "I said stay away!" She started towards the exit of the store with Rogue.

"Let her go," Logan said calmly.

"I can't go back to that place," the girl said. "I can't let them lock me up again."

"Don't let them take you away for murder," Logan said.

The girl continued to move towards the exit with Rogue. 

"Come on, we can work this out," Logan said. "Just let her go."

The girl grabbed Rogue by her head. 

"No!" Rogue said. "Don't touch me!"  
"I'm sorry," the girl said.

A bright white light flashed before Logan. When it disappeared, he looked up to see that the girl was gone. He rushed to Rogue. She was shaking.

"Rogue," he said. "Rogue, are you all right?"

She looked up at him. Her eyes filled with confusion. "Who are you?"

"Police say mutants were the cause of chaos this afternoon at Henderson Mall this afternoon…"

Storm shut off the television set and frowned. Scott and Jean stood next to her also frowning.

"Does we have any idea what kind of mutant Logan and Rogue saw?" Scott asked.

Jean shook her head. "We've never seen anything like it."

"Logan made it sound like the girl wiped out Rogue's memories when she teleported out of the mall," Storm said.

"Do you think the Professor can track her down using Cerebro?" said Scott.

"He's doing that right now," Jean said.

Storm lowered her eyes. "Lets hope for Rogue's sake, he finds the girl."

Voices. Too many voices. But none of them belonged to the girl. The Professor left Cerebro with even more questions. 

"Did you find her, Professor?" Storm asked when he entered the room.

"I could feel her, but I could not find her," he said.

"What do you mean?" Scott said. 

"She had many voices inside her mind," the Professor said. "It made it difficult for me to track her down."

"You mean like schizophrenia?" Jean said.

"Possibly," the Professor said, "but somehow I don't think that's the problem."

They waited for him to continue.

"I think the girl takes the memories from others and stores them inside her own mind," he said. "That's her power."

He watched her sleep. 

_"Who are you?"_

"It's me, Logan."

"I don't know you." She paused. "I don't know who I am."

She stirred.

_"Let me help you."_

"Don't hurt me."

"I would never hurt you."

He reached out his hand for her to take. She took it. 

That was when he realized Rogue was gone. She never would have taken his hand if she knew who she really was. 

"Where are you, Rogue?" 


	2. Two

Bobby waited until Logan left before he sneaked inside Rogue's room. She was sleeping. He couldn't believe it when he heard that she had lost her memory. He had to see for himself if she was all right. He stood over her and started to reach down for her hand before stopping himself. Just because she didn't know who she was didn't mean he forgot.

"What are you doing here?" John walked in.

"I just wanted to see if she was okay," Bobby said.

"So, is it true?" John asked. "Did she really lose her memory?"

"I don't know. She was sleeping when I came in."

Just then, Rogue opened her eyes and looked at the two boys. "Hi."

Bobby and John smiled at her.

"How are you doing?" Bobby asked.

"I just took the longest nap ever," she said. "Do you go to the school too?"

Bobby lost his smile. "Yeah, I do. I'm Bobby."

Rogue looked at John.

"I'm John," he said.

"So, Bobby, John," she said. "What kind of school is this?"

"I saw a fire, Scott. There was so much pain and suffering and misery." Jean wiped away her tears. "I heard their cries, but I couldn't get to them. I tried to save them, I did, Scott."

Scott comforted Jean once again after another nightmare. He ran his hand through her hair and kissed her forehead. "It was just a dream."

"I know," she said, "but it was so real. I can still feel it."

Suddenly, Scott cried out in pain. He looked down at his stomach, shocked to see the claws.

Jean looked up at Logan as he retracted his claws. Scott fell lifelessly onto the bed.

Jean woke up with a scream. She opened her eyes and brought up her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around them.

"Jean?" Scott touched her back. "What happened?"

She looked at him and an image of Scott with Logan's claws slicing into him flashed in her mind.

"Just hold me, Scott, just hold me," she said as she leaned against him. "And never let go."

"Any luck with the girl?" Logan walked into the Professor's office.   
"I'm afraid not," he said.

"We can't just sit here and not do anything," Logan said.

"We're trying our best, Logan," said the Professor. "I suggest you do too."

"I am," Logan said, his eyes filled with anger. 

"Are you?"

The Professor was probably inside his head right now. Logan sighed and left the room. He saw her sitting alone on a window sill.

"Rogue?"

She smiled at him. "Hi, Logan."

She seemed so calm--it kind of unnerved him.

"How are you doing, kid?"

"All right, I guess," she said. "I had lunch with Jubilee. She seems like a nice person."

"Have you talked to any other students?"

"Just Bobby and John," she said. "They told me about the school."

Logan raised an eyebrow. "What did they say?"

"It's a school for the gifted," she said. "It's hard to imagine myself as gifted."

__

But, you are, Rogue. You are.

"Is there anything I can help you with?" he asked.

"Yeah." She stared hard at him. "Help me find the truth."

Jean saw Logan and Rogue talking by the window and quickly went in the other direction. She was still thinking about the dream she had last night. It had left her with a unsettling feeling.

"Hey." Scott came up to her. "Are you okay?"

She nodded. "I was just looking for Rogue. She's talking to Logan."

"Does she look fine?"

"I guess so," she said. "She seems remarkably calm for someone who doesn't have any memory of her past."

"Unlike someone else," Scott said.

"Don't start please," Jean said.

"I'm sorry, but I can't help but wonder why Logan took Rogue out anyway," he said.

"She needed to get out of the school," she said. "There was nothing wrong with that."

Scott placed his hands on his hips. "I still don't trust him, Jean."

John lit the lighter and made a ball of fire in his hand. He watched it burn; the flames reflecting in his eyes. He had crept out of the school that night. Outside, he felt free, unrestricted; he could do anything--he could play with fire.

His thoughts wandered to Rogue. He missed her. Even though she was there in body, she wasn't the same. She wasn't the girl with the sad face, who had smiled at his dancing flames. He closed his hand and the flame went out.

Rogue watched John from her window. Logan had been telling the truth after all. They were different. She looked down at her gloved hands.

__

"When you touch someone, you take away their life force. When you touch another mutant, you take away their power."

She watched John play with his ball of fire and a sense of familiarity swept over her, but it quickly vanished. She went back to bed.

"Still reading that book?" 

Jean looked up as Logan walked in the room. "I finished Matheson a long time ago." She showed him the cover. "It's _The Complete Works of Oscar Wilde_." 

"And you're gonna read that entire thing?" He gestured to the book's thick binding filled with pages.

She laughed. "Of course. You don't start something without finishing it." She made herself stop laughing.

"What's wrong?" Logan asked.

"Nothing." She looked away from him.

"I told Rogue about us," he said. "About her powers, our powers."

"Logan, she wasn't ready--"

"She has a right to know," Logan said. "If people know about her past, they should tell her. It's the least I can do for her."

Jean nodded, understanding where he was coming from. The truth and the past--both things Logan was denied of. 

"How did she take it?" she asked.

"I don't know," he said. "She didn't really show any reaction to it."

"That's strange."

"I don't think it is," he said. 

"Why's that?"

"She has this void inside herself now," Logan said. "When you lose a part of yourself, like your past, your memories, a part of you shuts down. Sometimes it can revived and sometimes--"

"It can be lost forever," Jean said.

Bobby approached Rogue in the TV room. She sat in the corner, her eyes towards the window.

"Hi, Bobby," she said looking at him. "Wanna sit down?" 

He took a seat next to her. "Any luck with the memories?"

"Nothing."

"I'm sure the Professor is doing his best to help you," Bobby said.

"I know," she said. "Everyone's been really helpful."

"I wish there was more we could do--"

"Don't do that," she said.

"Do what?"

"Feel guilty." She sighed. "I can feel it in everyone here. I appreciate all the concern, but when it comes down to it, I'm the only one who can help myself."

Bobby nodded.

"Can we just talk, Bobby?" she said. "Forget about my problem. Forget about feeling sorry for me. Lets just talk, alright?"

"We can do that," he said.

Rogue smiled. "Good. So let me tell you this story. Jubilee and I were…"

The Professor awoke suddenly in the middle of the night. There she was. Her voice was coming in loud and clear now. She was scared. She was alone. She was--gone. He laid back down in bed and wondered about the mysterious girl.

He stopped by her room to find her studying at a desk. "Hey, kid, you busy?"

She smiled at him. "For you? Never." She closed her book. "It's amazing that I have no idea who I am, but I can still remember how to do algebra."

"You still have to do homework?" he said.

"I want to," she said. "I don't want my life, whatever that may be, to just stop because of this."

"Rogue, you lost your memory," he said.

She laughed. "I know, but that doesn't mean anything."

"Doesn't mean anything?" He thought about his own amnesia. His main goal was to find out what had happened to him, find out the cause of his nightmares. "Don't you want to remember? You had a life before, and now it's been taken away from you."

A sad smile appeared on her face. "Of course, I do, Logan. I do want to remember. I do want that life back, but I'm still living. I still have a life to live."

He reached over and placed a hand over her black glove.

Her eyes went wide with surprise at his touch. "Aren't you afraid?" she asked.

"I'm not afraid," he said softly.

"Come on, Drake!" John watched the ball as it dribbled in front of him. "You can't get past me." 

Bobby eyed the basket and faked to his right before shooting the basketball towards the net. 

They watched as the ball bounced off the rim and back onto the concrete.

"I win," John said with a grin.

"Good game," Bobby said. He went to the sidelines to grab a drink from his water bottle. 

"You're not mad I beat you?" asked John.

"I said good game." Bobby turned his back towards him.

"Admit it, you can't stand losing," John said, "especially not to me. In basketball, classes, girls--"

Bobby turned back suddenly to face him. His blue eyes were ice cold. "That's enough, John."

John glanced down at Bobby's hand and shook his head.

Bobby looked down to see that the water in the bottle had frozen.

"You better watch it, Bobby," John said. "Someone could get hurt." He left the court with a smile.

Jean glanced at Scott as they got ready for bed. She climbed under the covers and curled herself into a ball. Scott turned off the lights and got into bed with her, placing his arms around her. 

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Nothing's wrong."

"I can feel it, Jean," he said.

She turned to face him. "I don't want to fall asleep." She watched her reflection in his glasses. This was what Scott was seeing--her fear, her uncertainty. "The dreams…they're becoming too much of a reality."

Scott traced her face with a finger. "I'm right here. You don't have be afraid of anything."

Jean closed her eyes slowly, comforted at his words.

She woke up and came out into the hallway. She didn't know why, or where she was going, but she climbed down the stairs to find him in a room staring outside a window.

"I couldn't sleep," he said without looking at her.

"Why?" She moved to him.

"I have these dreams, and--" He looked at her. He thought about their conversation. The one they had before she lost her memory. "I just want to forget them."

She nodded. She looked up at the moon and smiled. "I love that story you told me, about how we first met."

He smiled also. "You owe me some gas money by the way."

"Those stories aren't stories though." Her smile slowly faded. "They're real. They're my life, and I can't remember anything from it."

His eyes filled with sadness for her. For so long, he had been consumed with his need to figure out his past that he had forgotten the pain, the loss of control, the absence of answers. 

"Let me help you," he said.

She looked at him questionably.

"Touch me." He looked into her eyes and she saw that he was serious about this. "Take off your gloves and touch me."

"I can't, Logan, I can hurt you," she said.

"Maybe you can get some of my memories, some of your memories," he said. "Then, you can remember, you can remember everything, the day we met, the day we came here, you can remember."

She stood there in shock. He was willing to risk his life for her to remember? Her eyes filled with tears as she contemplated the decision.

"I don't know anything about my power," she said. "What if I hold on for too long? What if I kill you? I can't. I can't do it."

"I want you too." He reached for her hand. "Just try." He softened his voice. "Try."

She slowly took off her gloves and stared at her hands and then at him. "I can't."

"Marie…"

Her eyes filled with more tears. Marie. Rogue. Marie. Rogue. Marie. Rogue. She had two names, yet she didn't know anything about them. She hesitantly reached for his face. He closed his eyes as she placed her hands on his head. Her soft hands over his rough skin, his stubble, and she waited.


	3. Three

"No." The Professor sat up in bed. His face was filled with fear as he tried to get to his wheelchair. "No," he said again, more urgently, more frantically. It couldn't happen. It had to be stopped. It had to be stopped before…

His eyes flew open as he felt her enter him. She was inside his head, his body, his heart, his soul…engulfing him, surrounding himself with her. He watched as she concentrated on his mind, his powers. Her eyes were shut, but her mouth was open slightly. Her body swayed gently as the world before her changed.

Images swept over her vision as his memories entered her mind. Canada, the bar, wrestling in the cages, sitting next to the kid who was watching the news, _she was the kid_, a fight, the pain of his claws shooting out of his hands, the pain of being feared, getting into his car, finding the kid, _finding her. _And then--then it was black. Something was wrong. She was swept up with images of pain, of isolation, of sadness, of death. She cried out and pulled away from him, shaking and in tears.

He watched her as she backed away from him. She looked at him as though he was a monster; she was scared of him. "Marie?" She continued to back away from him. He tried to walk towards her, but stumbled. He felt wiped out. He grabbed onto the window sill to steady himself. 

"Logan!" The Professor entered the room with Scott, Jean, and Storm. The Professor knew it was too late. "What have you done?"

He looked at Rogue again. "I was just--" Just trying to help sounded so trivial at the moment. 

Jean and Storm went to Rogue. 

"What happened, Rogue?" Storm asked.

Rogue wrapped her arms around herself. She was still shaking, still afraid. She looked into Logan's dark eyes, eyes that were as dark as the void she saw in him. "I saw it."

"What did you see?" said Jean.

"I saw everything," Rogue said softly.

The Professor lowered his head. A sudden fear came over him.

"How could you have been so stupid, Logan?" Jean paced the room later that day. "Allowing Rogue to tap into your memories, your powers, that was too dangerous, for you and for her."

Logan stood apart from the group. He felt like he was getting a lecture from his parents. What next? Was he going to get grounded? He crossed his arms across his chest with an annoyed expression.

"Do you even care about what you did to her?" Jean said. "Something happened last night. Something that even the Professor is worried about."

"I do care, Jean," Logan said. "Do you want me to admit I messed up? Fine. I messed up!"

Scott smirked. "And who's going to clean up your mess now?"

Logan took a step towards him with a growl.

"Stop it," Storm said. "We have to remember that Rogue is in trouble. The entire school senses something is wrong. We can't have the children see us fighting."

"Storm's right," Jean said. "I'm sorry, Logan."

He nodded at her.

Jean glanced at Scott.

Scott sighed. "Sorry."

"Yeah, me too," Logan said.

The Professor came into the room. He felt the tension in the room. "Did I miss something?"

"How's Rogue?" Logan asked.

"She's resting," the Professor said. 

"Did she say anything else about last night?" Jean said. "Did she give anymore details?"

"It didn't trigger her memories, if that's what you mean," the Professor said. "She has memories, but they're not hers."

"They're mine?" Logan said.

The Professor nodded. "I'm also afraid she tapped into something else."

"Like what?" said Scott.

He thought about the voice that was screaming inside his head last night. The one that had caused him to wake up, to be alarmed, to know that he had to go downstairs right away.

"I can't say at the moment," he said.

"Well, I'm going to go see her," Logan said.

"No," the Professor said. 

Logan looked at him. "No?"

"She's resting, Logan," he said. "I prefer it if you don't visit her right now."

"Fine." Logan stormed out of the room.

Bobby sneaked a look around the corner to see Logan leaving the room. "Hey." Logan turned to him, looking upset. Maybe this was a bad time. "Uh…"

"What is it?" Logan asked.

"I was just wondering about Marie," Bobby said. "Is she alright?"

"The Professor says she's resting," Logan said. "I assume she's fine."

"If you don't mind me asking," Bobby said, "what happened last night?"

Logan was silent for a moment. Really, he had no idea what happened last night. One minute, he and Rogue were talking, the next she was scared to death of him. What had she seen? 

"Listen," he said to Bobby, "you wanna see Rogue?"

Bobby nodded.

"I do too." Logan glanced back at the room. The door was shut. "Go to her and bring her to the clearing in the woods."

"I might get caught," Bobby said.

"Then don't." Logan turned to leave.

"It was intense, Bobby." Rogue wrapped a piece of grass around her gloved finger. "I felt like I was in control and out of control at the same time. It was scary." She stopped in the middle of the pathway in the woods. "And I'm still scared."

Bobby looked at her with concern. Maybe it was a bad idea to bring her out here to meet Logan. She was still shaken up over what happened. "Marie, I--"

"Rogue."

They looked up at Logan. He came towards them. Rogue's eyes immediately filled with fear. "Stay away," she said.

"I just want to talk to you," he said.

Rogue turned to leave the area.

Logan followed. "Rogue, please, I need to know what happened last night. Why are you scared of me now?"

She stopped with her back towards him.

"Rogue?" He slowly came up behind her.

"I saw it, Logan," she said on the verge of tears.

Bobby approached them, listening to their conversation.

Logan frowned at Rogue's answer. "I don't understand."

She turned to face to him. "I saw you." Her lip trembled. "I saw what was inside of you."

Jean stood before the bathroom mirror. She looked at brush and watched as it floated to her. She grabbed its handle and brushed her red hair, glancing at her reflection. She cried out at the sight. The reflection was her, but she was different. Her face was pale, almost ghostly, her eyes red like flames, her red hair long and untamed. She reached up to touch the mirror with her right hand; her reflection's left hand did the same.

"Jean?"

She blinked and the pale woman with long red hair vanished. 

"Jean?" Scott came into the bathroom. "Are you all right?"

She blinked again. "I'm fine."

They entered the mall and surveyed the area. Scott walked into the store where Rogue had been attacked. A saleswoman came up to him.

"I'm sorry, but you aren't allowed in here," she said.

Scott looked at her with a frown.

She stared at his red visor. "We've been having trouble with you people."

"You people?" he said.

"Mutants," the woman said.

Scott sighed. "This will only take a moment. I'm looking for a girl who was caught shoplifting here."

"If you're talking about the mutant girl, the police are taking care of it." The woman turned to leave. 

"We need your help," Scott said. "We need to find the girl so we can help someone."

"Who?" the woman said maliciously. "Another mutant?"

Scott took a step towards her. 

The woman jumped back at his movement. "If you don't leave this store immediately, I'm going to call security."

Jean and Storm came up behind Scott.

"There's nothing here," he said to them.

The woman watched the three mutants leave and let out a sigh of relief. Good riddance. She checked the clock and saw that it was closing time. She shut the doors and locked them before heading to the back room. As she started her paperwork, she heard a noise from behind her. She looked up to see nothing. Just her imagination. She turned back to her work and screamed.

Standing before her was…her. She stared at her own face and her own hair and clothes. "What the--"

Her duplicate grabbed her suddenly, twisting her neck.

Mystique smiled at the sound of bone breaking.


	4. Four

She sat cross-legged on her bed. She had been crying for awhile now, every since Storm told her that their trip to the mall had come up empty-handed. Still no answers; she was beginning to think that nothing was ever going to help her trigger her memories.

"Hey, kid."

She didn't look up at his voice. He was the last person she wanted to see. "I want to be alone."

He stepped in anyway. "You don't have to be alone right now."

"Well, I wanna be," she said, turning her back to him.

"Listen, Rogue," he said softly, "we're all trying to help and--"

"Help?" She wiped away another tear. "Is that what you call it? I didn't ask to touch you and now I have this--" She touched her head. "I have these images, these feelings inside me. I can't take it anymore."

"That's why you gotta talk, Rogue," he said. "I know you're trying to be strong and put up this front that none of this matters to you, but it does, doesn't it? You're scared. You're scared that you might never get your memory back."

She turned to face him. "I'm scared that I might become like you!"

"Me?" His face filled with hurt. "What?"

"You don't have a past, Logan," she said. "I don't have one either. When I went inside your mind, I felt the darkness. I felt the pain, the sadness, the anger. I don't want any of that."

"The difference is that you will get your memory back, Rogue," he said. "I won't. That's why I want to be here for you, that one of us, you, will remember their past."

Rogue looked into his eyes, saw that they were sincere, and found herself moving towards him across the bed.

"I'm so tired, Logan," she said.

"Get some rest."

She shook her head and placed a hand over her chest. "I'm tired inside." She laid her head down on the pillow. 

He reached over to touch her.

"Don't," she said. "Please don't."

He nodded and pulled over a chair as she closed her eyes. He watched her sleep.

**

Jean was on her way to see the Professor when a voice came to her. It was a young girl and she was speaking directly to her.

"_You're looking for me."_

Jean placed her hand on the wall, feeling weakened.

"Are the girl who took away Rogue's memories?"

_"Yes."_

"Why are you hiding?"

_"I don't want to be harmed."_

"You won't be. We need your help."

The girl did not answer right away.

_"I need your help also."_

**

"How was it possible that she could telepathically communicate with me, Professor?" Jean asked. She stood next to Scott with Storm and Logan in the Professor's office. "I thought she could only take away memories. Is this another power we don't know of?"

"Possibly," the Professor said, contemplating the situation. "It is quite remarkable that she was even able to make contact with you."

"She wants to help us," Jean said, "but only if we help her."

"How?" asked Storm.

"She's looking for her brother," Jean said. "He's a mutant also, but she hasn't seen him in nearly five years."

"I suppose we can use Cerebro to find him," the Professor said, "but we can't take her word just yet."

"So, now what?" Logan said. "Are we just gonna wait around until this girl decides to talk to Jean again?"

"Glad you mentioned that, Logan," Scott said as he threw him the set of keys. "You get to pick her up at the train station."

**

Logan stood in the crowded train station lobby, looking at every face, trying to figure out how in the hell he was supposed to know who the girl was. He placed his hands in his leather jacket and turned to see a girl staring at him. She was around Rogue's age with blonde hair and blue eyes. She was dressed in a dark coat and black jeans. She appeared timid as she approached him.

"Hi, Logan," she said.

"How do you who I am?" he asked.

"I don't," she said in a sweet tone, so innocent that it could be considered evil. "Rogue does."

In the car, Logan and the girl sat in silence. She sat quietly with her hands placed on her lap, her eyes looking out the windshield.

"So, you got a name?" Logan said.

"Zoey," she said. And then, "Do people still call you Wolverine?"

It was strange to hear such private things about him coming from this stranger; this stranger who had Rogue's memories.

"Listen, Zoey," he said, "you gonna give Rogue back her memories. That's the only way we can help you find your brother."

"I know," she said. "It's a 50-50 deal."

He glanced over at her. "So, how long have you been on your own?"

"Ever since my parents threw me out of the house," she said bitterly. "They got all paranoid about this mutant thing and disowned me."

"And your brother?" 

"My brother took off way before I did," she said. "He left on his own though. My parents adopted him when he was a baby, but when he got old enough, he left. He hated living in that house. So did I."

"So, you like living like this?" he asked.

"Yeah, I get into trouble, but everything I'm doing, it's because I choose it," she said. "It's all about independence, making the choices you make, making the mistakes you make. Kinda like you and her."

"Me and who?"

"You and Rogue."

The answer caught Logan by surprise. "What do you mean me and Rogue?"

"You gotta believe me when I say I really am sorry about Rogue, but I had to get out of that mall before the cops came." She looked at him. "I can teleport using other people's energies and that wipes out their memories, kinda like a side-effect. Anyway, I have all these memories inside my head, sometimes I don't know which ones are mine or other peoples, but Logan, you should see what Rogue sees, it's so beautiful."

"What does she see?" he asked.

"She sees you," Zoey said, smiling. "I was there when she saw you in that bar in Canada. She was scared of you, but she was intrigued. I was there when you and her met Scott and Jean and Storm and the Professor. She only wanted to stay because you were there. I was there when she would wake up at night and find you at that window. I know what you two were talking about, and what she was feeling. She really cares about you, Logan." She stopped and lowered her head. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to just blurt all of that out. These are Rogue's memories, her thoughts, I shouldn't have said anything."

Logan turned his attention back to the road, trying to hide the tears that were collecting in his eyes.

**

John saw the car drive up the driveway and stop as Logan and a young blonde girl got out. Another student? He went closer and hid a few feet away.

"The Professor will probably want to see you right away," Logan said to the girl. He opened the front door for her.

The girl nodded and stepped inside the school.

John waited a moment and then followed them. He found the girl sitting in a chair outside the Professor's office. "Hey."

"Hey," she said.

"I'm John." He looked into her blue eyes and he thought he could see them changing colors--blue, green, hazel, then back to blue.

"Zoey."

Just then, the Professor's door opened and he came out. "Hello, John," he said.

"Hi," John said stepping out of the way.

"Come in," the Professor said to Zoey.

She got up and smiled at John before entering the office.

John watched the door close and stood there, his thoughts lingering on Zoey.

**

"She's here?" She grinned at the news. "She's really here?"

"Yeah, and she wants to help you," he said, happy to see her smiling again.

"That's great," she said. She sat down on the couch and tucked a leg under her. "You were right, Logan. I'm going to get my memories back."

He sat down next to her. "Yeah, kid, you are."

She threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

He remembered what Zoey had said, "She really cares about you, Logan." _Well, I care about her too, _he thought as he wrapped his own arms around her.

**

From the doorway, Bobby looked on as Logan and Rogue embraced. Jealously filled his body. He tried to push it away as he turned from them.


	5. Five

The Professor looked at the young blonde girl, almost afraid of her. He moved his wheelchair to face her in her seat.

"I know what you're trying to do," Zoey said.

"What am I trying to do?" he asked.

"Get inside my head," she said matter-of-factly. "I know you were looking for me before. I could feel you searching, but all these memories I got inside my head, it messed you up."

The Professor was once again amazed with the girl. "Well, Zoey…"

"Can you help me find my brother?" she said, her tone changing to a desperate plea.

"That depends," he said.

"I already said I was going to help Rogue, now can you help me?" she said.

"We can try." The Professor was still unsure about her. He had a troubling feeling inside that seemed to be warning him. "What can you tell me about your brother?"

"I was kinda wondering if you could tell me that," she said. "I mean, Alex left when I was still young. He should be about twenty years old now."

"And he's a mutant?"

She nodded. "I don't remember much about him or his powers, but maybe you can find him, or someone here can help me find him. I've been on my own for awhile, don't know that many other people like me."

"Well, you've come to the right place then," the Professor said. "You can stay here as long as you like, Zoey."

"Thank you," she said with a small smile.

The Professor headed to the door and Zoey followed. "I can have someone show you to a guest room and then--" He stopped as he opened the door to see John standing before him. "John, what are you still doing here?"

"Do you need someone to show her around?" John asked.

John and Zoey shared a smile.

"If you would like, you can show her where the guest rooms are," the Professor said.

"Sure," John said, and then he and Zoey walked down the hallway side by side.

The Professor watched them, still troubled with the ominous feeling he had.

** 

"Thanks." Zoey entered the room and sat down on the bed. She looked around the place and then back at the dark-haired boy. Definitely cute, and definitely checking her out. "So, John, what can you do?"

"What do you mean?" he said.

"Powers," she said, "What's your gift?"

He took out a lighter. "I play with fire." The red flame bounced to his hand and he turned it into a small ball.

"That's so cool," Zoey said.

John saw the flames reflected in her blue eyes and how they became almost as dark as his own eyes. He smiled at the sight. He closed his hands and the ball of fire vanished. "Well, you know what they say, if you play with fire, you can get burned."

Zoey leaned back on the bed with a smile. "I don't mind."

** 

She knocked on her door before coming in. Her blonde head turned to her. 

"Hi, Rogue."

"Are you Zoey?" 

"Yup." Zoey motioned to the chair. "You can sit down if you want."

"Thanks." She sat down and looked at the girl. So it was true. Someone else had her memories, but that someone was here right now, willing to help. "So--"

"I'm scared too," Zoey said suddenly.

"Scared?"

"Yeah," Zoey said, "I don't know what's going to happen. I've never done this before. When I teleport, I usually don't see those people again, well, only inside my head when I see their memories, but I guess this time is different."

"What do you see inside there?" she asked.

"I see a lot of things." Zoey crossed her legs on the bed. "I feel a lot of things too. To tell you the truth, there are a lot of sad people in this world. I mean sad like they're empty, like you."

She looked at her questionably. 

"It seems like we have some things in common, Rogue," Zoey said thoughtfully. "You had a troubled childhood, people were afraid of you so you left home, so did I. We went searching for the thing that would help us, be our anchor, our strength, but that's where we're different." She paused to think, to feel. "You've found yours, and I'm still searching for mine."

"Your brother?" said Rogue.

"He's out there, and I want to find him," Zoey said. "He was my only family and I let him go."

"You will find him," Rogue said.

"I hope so," Zoey said.

"You said I found my anchor," Rogue said, "who is it?"

Zoey smiled at her, wondering how she could ask a question like that. The answer was so simple. "It's Logan."

** 

"Hey, Bobby." Jubilee approached him slowly. He didn't turn to her. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." His voice was cold and distant.

Jubilee looked around the room. It was empty besides her and Bobby. "Do you want to study for that math test together later?"

He shrugged. "Sure." Even colder, even distant.

"Okay, whatever." Jubilee rolled her eyes and turned to leave.

"Wait."

She turned back and Bobby was looking at her. 

"I'm sorry, Jubilee," he said. "I'm just in a bad mood, that's all."

She shrugged. "No biggie."

"Have you talked to Marie lately?" Bobby asked.

"Haven't seen her all day," she said. "My guess is that she's with Logan." She noticed Bobby's eyes darken. "Oh, I get it."

"What?" he said.

"You're jealous," she said, sticking a piece of gum in her mouth. "It's all over your face."

"Am not."

"Are to."

"Am not."

"Are to."

"Am--" He stopped. "What are we, like two?"

Jubilee blew a bubble with her gum until it popped. "Speak for yourself."

** 

Jean found the girl alone in her room. "Hi, Zoey, can I come in?"

The blonde nodded.

Jean came in and closed the door behind her. "How are you doing?"

"Fine, I guess," Zoey said. "The people here are really nice. I'm not used to it."

Jean looked over the girl. She was young, probably sixteen, seventeen. Round innocent face with bright blue eyes framed with long blonde hair. She was dressed in gray sweats and a T-shirt, probably on loan from one of the girls. Jean noticed that Zoey was doing the same to her, sizing her up.

"You're pretty powerful, you know that?" Zoey said.

"What do you mean?"

"When I was speaking to you telepathically, I could feel your power," she said, "It was intense, almost scary. It's only going to get bigger."

Jean thought about her dreams and the vision in the mirror. "I can control it."

Zoey looked at her skeptically, but her expression quickly changed. "What's going to happen to me?"

"Well, we're trying to find out how exactly your teleportation works with your ability to retrieve memories," Jean said, "And then, we can try to get Rogue back her memories."

"And my brother?"

"The Professor is doing his best to find him," said Jean. She moved to the door. "I should get going, and you should get some rest, you've had a long day."

"Yeah, I should." Zoey lifted up her blanket and watched as Jean left. She waited a moment and glanced out to the hallway and saw that it was clear. She left her room and went downstairs to meet John.

** 

"He used to send me postcards from all the places he went to." Zoey took out the cards and handed them to John. "There's one from France, and Alaska, and even one from China."

John looked through the colorful pictures, scanning over the short messy messages Zoey's brother had written on the back. "He went to all these places in five years?"

"He always wanted to travel," Zoey said. "I remember he had this globe in his room and he would tell me how he was going to visit all these countries, and now that's what he's doing."

John handed the cards back to Zoey and looked up at the moon. They were sitting on the tables near the basketball court. "You think it's true that the moon looks the same to everyone?"

"Like if my brother was looking at the moon right now, we'd be looking at the same sky?" Zoey said.

"Yeah."

Zoey followed John's eyes. "I think so." She sighed and looked back down. "So, fire boy, show me what else you got." She smiled at him as he pulled out his lighter.

** 

She knew she would find him here. Standing in the same room, looking through the same window. The moonlight came through the glass, casting a warm glow around him. 

"Hey," she said softly. 

"Hey, kid." He looked at her with a small smile. "Another bad dream?"

She shook her head. "I was looking for you."

He raised an eyebrow. 

"I wanted to talk," she said.

"About what?" 

"I just wanted to say thank you," she said. "I know I was mad at you before, but I was scared and confused. I shouldn't have yelled at you like that, you were just trying to help me so thank you."

"Don't worry about it, alright?"

She looked at him looking at her. "Well, that's all I wanted to say." She turned to go when he reached for her, touching her arm gently. 

"Listen, kid, I can't sleep," he said. "Wanna keep me company?"

"Sure," she said smiling.

** 

Zoey went back to her room undetected. She tried to ignore the feeling inside her stomach, a feeling she thought she would never have, but after spending time with John, she now knew that it was possible to have a connection with someone. She smiled to herself as she climbed into bed, but before she could fall asleep, a shadow moved inside her room. She sat up and turned the lights back on. She gasped at the sight. She was staring at herself.

"What are you doing here?" she said madly.

Mystique morped into her true form. Her yellow eyes stared at Zoey. "Erik sent me to check on your status."

"Everything is going the way he planned," Zoey said. "Now leave."

"I saw you outside with that boy," Mystique said. She changed into John. "Don't let him make you forget why you're here."

"I won't as long as you don't hurt my brother," Zoey said.

Mystique winked at her with John's dark eyes. "He is a cutie, isn't he?"

"Leave," said Zoey.

Mystique walked out the door as Zoey turned off the lights again and laid awake in the dark.


	6. Six

Scott walked past the room and then retreated his steps to enter it. "Rogue?"

The dark-haired girl looked up at him from her chair. "Hi."

"What are you doing in here?" he asked.

"I just wanted some time by myself," she said.

He nodded and turned to leave.

"Why don't you like Logan?"

Her question made him turn back. "Who says I don't like him?"

She raised an eyebrow.

"Alright, I don't like the guy," Scott said. "I don't know why, really, I just--"

"Feel threatened?" Rogue said.

"I guess you can say that," Scott said.

"He knows you're the leader here," she said. "He respects you, in his own way, and I think you respect him too in your own way."

"Well, respect is something different than trust," said Scott. "I don't know if I can trust him."

"You can trust him." Rogue smiled. "I don't know if you find that credible or not, I mean, I do have amnesia, but I guess it's my intuition telling me that Logan means well in whatever he does."

"I wish I could say the same, Rogue," Scott said. He turned back to the door.

"And he knows Jean is yours too," Rogue said.

Scott paused in the doorway.

"You don't need to feel threatened," she said.

He left before she could continue.

** 

Logan came down the stairs and saw Rogue playing cards with Bobby and Jubilee. He watched her for a moment and left through the front door. 

He "borrowed" Scott's motorcycle and drove to town and stopped at the first bar he saw. He hadn't been to one since he and Rogue came to the school. He needed a beer. Bad. 

At the counter, he gulped down his long-neck and observed the smoky bar. Lots of tatoos and leather. He used to live in places like this. And then he met the kid. Maybe meeting her had turned him soft. He chuckled at the thought. Him, soft? He turned back to the bartender for another drink.

A tall brunette appeared next to him. "You look a little lonely tonight, honey." 

He looked at her tight black dress and long tan legs. He took a drink of his beer. "Maybe I am."

"Well, maybe I can solve that problem." She leaned in closer to him, her breath warm against his skin. "Wanna let me try?"

He put down his drink and grabbed the woman's hand. 

** 

She went down to the room and to her surprise, he wasn't there. She sat down on a chair and waited for him. He never came. She fell asleep and was awakened by the front door opening. She saw him stumble in.

"Logan?"

He looked up at her like a deer caught in a car's headlights. "What are you still doing up, kid?"

She noticed that he was slurring his words. He had been out drinking. She also noticed a scent--something she had picked up from him. The scent didn't belong to her or to him. A woman. A woman he had picked up. "I was waiting for you."

"What for?" he said. 

Something was different. He was detached, unfeeling.

"I just--"

"Go to bed, _kid_." He spit out the word like it was venom. 

Her face filled with hurt. She even waited a moment for him to apologize, but he just stood there silently in the dark. She ran out of the room.

** 

"Rogue, are you okay?" Jubilee stood over her roommate with a concerned look. "Are you awake?" She pulled down Rogue's covers and found the girl under her pillows. "What's wrong?"

"I don't wanna talk about it," Rogue said.

Jubilee grabbed the pillows off Rogue. "You've been crying."

"Leave me alone, please." Rogue threw the blanket over her head again.

"Is it this Zoey thing?" Jubilee said. "The Professor is trying to figure out how to get your memories back, you know."

"No," came the muffled response.

"Then, what is it?"

"You can zap things, right?"

"Why?"

Rogue showed her face. "Can you zap someone for me?"

** 

John walked into Zoey's room and saw her talking on her cell phone.

"Yes, I will," she said. "I said I will. I'll let you know when I'm ready." She hung up and let out an exasperated sigh. She turned and jumped at the sight of John. "Oh, hey, John."

"Who were you talking to?" he asked.

"Oh, no one important," she said tossing her phone on the bed. "So, have you heard anything about my brother yet?"

He shook his head. "None of students really know what's going on."

"Well, I'm going to go to find out," Zoey said.

"Before you do," John moved his hand from around his back and revealed a small globe, "I got this for you."

Zoey smiled. "You did?" She took the globe and traced the outlines of the countries. She looked at John and felt it again--that tingling in her stomach, that connection. "Thank you."

"I know how much you want to find your brother and that his globe was an important part of his life so I wanted you to have something he had," John said.

Zoey pulled him into a hug. She suddenly thought Mystique. _"Don't let him make you forget why you're here." _She pulled away and put the globe down on the table. "Thanks again, fire boy."

** 

The Professor looked up from his desk to see Zoey in his office. "Zoey, come sit down."

She sat down in the chair in front of his desk. "Have you found anything about my brother yet?"

"I'm afraid not," he said. "There's not enough information to help me track him down. I don't know anything about his powers or abilities."

Zoey leaned back against the chair with her arms crossed across her chest. "Well, then my half of the deal is off. Rogue doesn't get back her memories."

The Professor sighed. "Zoey, we both are in very frustrated situations and the only way we can get what we want is to work together."

She threw up her hands. "Alright."  
"Good," the Professor said. "If you don't mind, Jean would like to speak to you."

"About what?"

"She may have found a way to retrieve Rogue's memories," he said.

** 

Logan sat alone in the dining room with his feet propped up on the table and a beer in his hand. He didn't remember much from last night. Lots of drinking, then that brunette, then what? He closed his eyes and suddenly remembered. Rogue. A sense of guilt swept over his body. Damn. He didn't know what had come over him. It was too messy to try to explain. Sure, he liked the kid, but it was the kid that was holding him back. Here he was getting so caught up with trying to help her find out about her past that he had forgotten about his own mission to find out about his own. But he couldn't just leave her. She needed a friend. Then again, she was making friends here at the school, friends her own age. He smirked at the thought. He finished his beer and crushed the can in his hand.

"You think you're some Mr. Big Shot, huh?"

He looked up to see Jubilee. She was chewing her bubble gum loudly, smacking it in between her lips and teeth as she talked.

"Rogue is up in her room crying her eyes out and here you are drinking beer," she said.

"Listen--"

"No, you listen, you're like her best friend, man," Jubilee said, "and you go and act like some total jerk to her."

Logan started to laugh. He couldn't help it. He felt like he was in some bad teenage movie.

"What are you laughing at?" Jubilee asked.

He kept on laughing.

Jubilee rolled her eyes. "I _should _zap you." She left the room.

** 

Zoey followed Jean into a room and looked around. "What is this place?"

"It's called the Danger Room," Jean said. "The Professor built it so we can practice our powers here."

"Oh, cool."

"We should be able to work privately here," Jean said.

"I don't think we should," Zoey said nervously. "I mean, are you sure you know what you're doing?"

Jean nodded. "Now we just have to test my theory."

"And that would be?"

"The Professor couldn't find you because you had other memories, other presences inside you, but somehow you and I managed to connect," Jean said, "so I'm going to try to get inside you telepathically and try to find how to recover Rogue's memories."

"Maybe you shouldn't," said Zoey.

"Why not?"

"I don't know how I feel about you getting inside my head," she said.

"This coming from the girl who steals peoples' memories," Jean said.

"Fine." Zoey sat down in a chair. "Lets get this over with."

Jean sat down across from her and looked into her blue eyes. "Just concentrate with me, Zoey. Open your mind. Let me inside you."

Jean felt the world around her expanding. Suddenly, she could hear thoughts, voices, and feel emotions--none of them belonged to her, they didn't belong to Zoey either. She searched for Rogue. A picture of Logan flashed in her mind and then she found Rogue. A intense pain hit her and then the images were disappearing. She was beginning to lose touch with Rogue. She struggled with the pain to find her way back to Rogue, but something was holding her back, making her look somewhere else. She saw a bright red flame and followed it into a darkness where a voice was hiding. Something that did not want to be found.

An image flashed before Jean.

__

"I'll help you if you will let me see my brother." Zoey was talking to someone. 

"Your brother will not be harmed as long as you follow my directions," the other voice, a man, said.

_"I'll go to them," Zoey said. "I'll go to them and pretend that I want to help."_

"And then what?" the man said.

"Then, I'll kill them," she said.

Jean looked up at who Zoey was talking to and gasped. 

Magneto.

_"Charles and his school won't know what hit them," he said._

The red flame grew brighter as the image of Mageneto vanished. Jean heard screaming and wondered where it was coming from before realizing that she was the one screaming. She found herself back in Danger Room with Zoey. 

Zoey had her hands on Jean's head. A bright white light appeared and Zoey closed her eyes. When she opened them back up, she was up in the guest room. Her hands were shaking, her entire body was shaking. She hadn't planned on starting this soon, but she had no choice. Jean had tapped inside her memories, something that no one had ever done before, and she had found out about her plan with Magneto. 

After years of looking for Alex, Zoey met Magneto who had claimed that her brother was alive and that only he could show her where Alex was, but first she had to do something for him. 

_"I heard you took away one of Charles's student's memories," Magneto said._

"I didn't mean anything by it," she said.

"Of course, you didn't," he said. "They love the cute and innocent act over at that school." He made a face. "You will meet them, plea for their help on finding your brother, gain their trust, then kill them."

"Kill them?"

"That's the fun part," he said. 

"I can just get the information myself," she said. "I can grab your head right now and teleport right to him."

Magneto smiled. "Go ahead, but your brother won't be alive. I can have him killed in an instant if you touch me."

"You're lying," she said.

"Am I?" He was still smiling.

Zoey made herself calm down before calling a number on her cell phone. "It's me. I'm doing it tonight. Right now." She hung up and waited for them to come find her.

__


	7. Seven

"Have you seen Jean?" Scott asked the Professor as he entered the office. "Is she still with Zoey?"

The Professor raised his head suddenly. "She's in trouble."

Scott and the Professor quickly went to the Danger Room and found Jean laying on the ground.

"Jean?" Scott sat her up and looked at her. "Jean, answer me."

She opened her eyes with a confused expression. "Where am I?"

"In the Danger Room," Scott said. "What happened? Where's Zoey?"

"Zoey?" Jean touched her head. "I don't know what happened. I don't know…" She paused and looked up at the two men. "I don't know anything."

** 

Zoey stood in the hallway. She paced up and down as she thought about what she had to do. What she had agreed to do.

"Zoey?" 

She turned to see John approaching her. 

"Did you want to go outside and talk today?" he asked.

"I can't, John." She hesitated on her next move. "I--I'm in trouble."

He looked at her for an explaination.

"You have to go now," she said. "Leave this place, please."

"What's going on, Zoey?" he said worried.

"I don't want to hurt you." She tried to remain strong. "I don't want you to be here to see what I have to do. Just leave."

John stayed in place, still looking at her. "Tell me what's going on."

Zoey went into her room and came back out with the globe John had given her. "Here. Take this and go."

"I gave this to you," he said.

She placed it in his hand. "Well, now I'm giving it back. Take it with you as a memory of me."

"A memory of you?" John stared down at the globe, wondering what kind of trouble Zoey was in. "Come with me, then. If you're in trouble, I can help you."

Zoey's face looked as if she was actually contemplating the idea, but she shook her head. "I can't come with you, John. I need to stay here and finish what I started."

John looked at her, studying her face. 

"Go!" Zoey looked away from his hurtful eyes.

He took a step back and disappeared down the hallway.

Zoey placed her hand on the wall as a shooting pain penetrated her head. It was Jean. Jean's memories were filled with screaming and darkness. And then Zoey felt another surge of pain hit her. Rogue. They all wanted out. 

"Zoey."

She ignored the pain as Scott came up to her. 

"Zoey," he said again. He cautiously went towards her. "Don't be afraid."

"Me?" she said. "You should be the one afraid." She ran to him just as Scott jumped out of the way, but she was quicker, placing her hands on his head. A bright light appeared and then she was gone.

** 

Logan saw the bright white light in the room and went in to investigate. Storm was sitting on the ground, dazed. 

"Storm?" he said.

She looked up at him. "Who are you?"

Another flash of the white light caught Logan's attention. "Stay here," he said to Storm. He went out to the hallway where Jubilee was leaning against the wall.

"What happened?" he asked.

"I don't know," she said. "I can't remember anything."

Logan caught a scent and started to follow it. He saw Zoey at the end of the hallway with Kitty. "Hey!" He went to them just as Zoey grabbed Kitty's head and the white light appeared. Logan shielded his eyes and when it was gone, he looked up to see Kitty, but Zoey wasn't with her.

"Logan!"

He turned at the sound of Rogue's voice. "Rogue?" She was standing a few feet away from him. She motioned for him to come with her and they went down another hallway. 

"She's taking everyone's memories," she said. "I don't understand."

"Me neither, kid," he said, scanning the area for any more signs of Zoey. "Have you seen the Professor or the others?"

She shook her head. "Do you thinks she got them?"

"She got Storm, but I haven't seen the others," he said.

The sound of a door opening made them turn.

"Stay behind me," Logan said as he went to the room. 

They entered the dark room just as the lights came on. They both jumped at the sight of Bobby standing in the room.

"What's going on?" Bobby asked.

Logan looked at him, annoyed. "Don't scare us like that again."

"I scared you?" Bobby smirked. "Cool."

"Bobby, I'm glad you're okay," Rogue said. "Zoey's on some kind of stampede, wiping out everyone's memories."

Bobby frowned. "We gotta get out of here then."

Just then, a bright white light illuminated the hallway. The three rushed out just in time to see Zoey vanish again. Peter was slumped over on his side.

"I'm going after her," said Logan.

"How?" Rogue said. "She's teleporting everywhere. You don't know where she's going to end up next."

"It's called instinct," Logan said as he started to walk away.

"Logan," Rogue said.

He turned back to her.

"Don't hurt her," she said.

He couldn't guarantee anything, but he nodded, understanding that Zoey was the only link to Rogue and her past.

** 

In an instant, she was there. Zoey looked around the office and saw the Professor sitting by the window. "Professor."

"Zoey." He turned his wheelchair to face her. 

"I guess you know why I'm here to see you," she said.

"No, I don't," he said. "I'm still unable to read your thoughts. You've done a good job covering up your own mind with the minds of others."

"Thank you."

"But, after seeing what you did to Jean," he said, "I know you're here to come claim my memories."

She nodded. "See, you didn't need your powers for that, just your own common sense."

"And your brother? Does he even exist?" the Professor asked.

"He does," she said. "And after I'm done here, I can finally see him again."

"Who made you that promise?" he said. "Can you trust the man who made you that promise?"

"How do you know it was a man?"

"Only one man would send someone like you after me," the Professor said. "What kind of lies did Erik tell you?"

"They're not lies," Zoey said. "He knows where my brother is and after I do this for him, he's going to take me to my brother."

"Zoey, please believe me when I say that _we_ are the ones who want to help you," he said. "Erik doesn't care about your brother or about you."

"Shut up!" Zoey tried to think, but all she could hear were the voices in her head. They were too many, too loud. She couldn't concentrate anymore. She felt as though she was losing herself. 

"Zoey--"

"NO!" Zoey felt herself start to leviate off the ground. "Here's something else you didn't know I could do, Professor."

The sound of thunder made the Professor turn his head towards the window. A storm? No, it wasn't that…it was…He looked back at Zoey, whose eyes clouded over in a gray color and then turned to red. Could it be? Had she obtained their memories and powers? The red laser beam from Zoey's eyes hit him suddenly. He fell out of his wheelchair.

Zoey came back down on her feet and looked down at him. "Feeling a little helpless? How about confused?" She knelt down next to him. "Well, it's only going to get better." She placed her hands on his head.

** 

Logan saw the bright white light from the Professor's office and ran to it only to find the Professor lying on the ground. "Professor! Can you hear me?" The Professor laid still on the ground.

"Logan?" 

He heard Rogue out in the hallway. He went out and saw that she was alone. "Where's Bobby?"

"He went to find more students, but I wanted to come find you," she said.

"Come on, kid, you gotta get out of here," he said.

"What happened to the Professor?" she asked, looking back at the office.

"Lets not talk about it."

"She got him, didn't she?"

Logan didn't reply.

"If she could get the Professor, that means she can do anything," Rogue said. "We can't escape from this. She's going to come after you, and she's going to come after me again, make me forget again."

Logan stopped and looked at her. "Stop talking like that. She isn't going to touch you. I'll make sure of that."

"How sweet." Zoey came walking down the hallway. "I like the big hero type."

Logan raised his hands showing his metal claws. "Don't make me hurt you."

"Hurt me? Why would you want to do that?" Zoey said. "I'm the only way Rogue can ever get her memories back. I'm her only chance to finding her past and you want to hurt me?"

Logan glanced at Rogue.

"You know I'm right," Zoey said. "You can't hurt me. You _won't _hurt me." She touched her head as another pain shot through her mind. She stumbled, but found her balance again. She smiled despite the pain. "You got some powerful people here. Nice powerful memories too. Like the Professor and Jean."

Suddenly, Rogue grabbed Logan with her bare hands. He was too shocked to move as he felt his energy being drained from him.

"They didn't know how powerful they were," Zoey said. "Mind control. Nice, huh?" She turned and left Logan and Rogue.

Logan looked into Rogue's dark eyes as she continued to hold onto his head. "Rogue…" Her eyes were cold and robotic. He fell to his knees as he felt weaker and weaker. Then, he did the only thing he could to save himself. He plunged his claws into her chest. Her eyes softened as her face filled with astonishment. She pulled her hands away from him and whispered his name before collapsing. 

** 

Zoey entered the main lobby just as a bolt of cold air hit her sending her to the ground. She looked up to see Bobby. 

"We haven't actually met," she said standing up, "but I know you."

"You don't know me," he said. "Those memories that you stole know me."

She tilted her head to her left and sighed. "And soon you won't even know who you are." She charged at him as he blasted another shot of cold air at him.

Bobby watched as she dodged the shot and ran right through him. He turned to see her standing behind him. "Nice trick. Did you borrow it from Kitty?"

"That's not the only thing I borrowed." She preceeded to leviate off the ground. Her eyes became dark with storm clouds. She raised her hands towards Bobby.

He reacted by shooting a surge of cold air at Zoey. 

Zoey prepared to fight back with a bolt of lightening when the sharp pain appeared again inside her mind. She heard the screaming, the cries of the many people and their memories wanting to escape. She grabbed her head and cried out in agony just as the cold blast from Bobby hit her. She came falling down from the air.

Bobby kept his distance for a moment in case she got up, but she remained still. He watched as a white light emerged from inside Zoey and floated over her body and then suddenly it vanished.

** 

Storm entered the Professor's office and gasped at the sight of the Professor laying on the floor. She quickly helped him back to his wheelchair. "Professor, are you all right?"

He nodded despite the weakness he felt. 

"What happened?" Storm asked. "One minute I was talking to Zoey and then she was gone. It was as if I had lost a block of time."

"You didn't lose time," the Professor said. "You lost your memory."

** 

"Jean!" Scott ran into their bedroom where he and the Professor had left her after finding her in the Danger Room. "Jean!"

She was sitting up on the bed with a bewildered expression. "Scott?" 

He embraced her and held her tightly. "Shhh…" He kissed her, thankful that she was safe.

Logan stared at Rogue's lifeless body with tears in his eyes. He retracted his claws back into his hands and staggered over to Rogue. She was bleeding from his claw marks. Her eyes were closed and her face was turning pale. She was dying. "I'm so sorry," he said softly.

Just then, a white light appeared over Rogue. Logan watched as it faded into her body. He moved back as Rogue's body began to float in front of him.

** 

It was overpowering. All her memories. Her first day in kindergarten. Her mother's smile. Her first kiss. The day she ran away from home. Hitchiking across the country until she ended up in Canada. Entering that bar and finding Logan. Meeting the Professor and the students. Going shopping at the mall. And then---touching Logan and going inside him, absorbing him. Seeing Zoey. _You said I found my anchor, who is it? It's Logan._ Bobby. John. Jubilee. _Go to bed, kid. _Seeing Zoey, but it wasn't the same Zoey from before, or maybe this was the real Zoey. Running from Zoey. _It's Logan. _Kill him, Rogue. Kill him now. It was Zoey, inside her head, controlling her mind. The look in Logan's eyes as he stabbed her with his claws. _It's Logan._ And then it was dark. _It's Logan. _And then it was white. _It's _

Logan watched in amazement as the white light laid Rogue back down on the ground. She glowed for a few more minutes before the light disappeared. He went to her and touched the white streak that had appeared in her dark hair. He looked closer and saw the wounds in her chest healing themselves. She was slowly opening her eyes.

"Rogue? It's Logan."

_It's Logan. _

She breathed in as if she was being born again and let out the deep breath. "Logan." She let his name linger on her lips. "I remember. I remember everything."

** 

one week later

Scott entered the Professor's office. "Any word on Zoey's condition?"

"She's still in a coma," the Professor said. "The doctors think she may never come out of it."

"What should we do about John, Professor?" Scott asked.

The Professor sighed. "I'm afraid we can't do anything about it, Scott. We must let him go. He chose to leave the school and he will come back when the time is right."

Scott shut the door and turned back to the Professor. "Professor, about Logan--"

"You don't have to worry about him," the Professor said. "He knows what he has to do."

** 

Logan watched Rogue with the other students as they watched television. A small smile came across his face.

"Are these your bags?" 

He turned to see Jean standing next to his bags.

"Where are you heading?" she asked.

He shrugged. "No where. Everywhere. I don't know."

"For how long?" she said.

"I don't know that either." He picked up a bag and slung the strap over his shoulder. "You gonna miss me?"

Jean looked into the TV room. "I think someone else will."

Logan looked back at Rogue. "Well, Jean, that's why I'm leaving. Seeing everyone lose their memories and then getting them back, it made me see that I gotta do some searching of my own. The Professor gave me some information that might help me find out about my past. I gotta check it out."

Jean nodded. "I hope you find what you're looking for, Logan."

"Logan." Scott walked up to them. "I heard you were leaving the school."

"You must be devasted," Logan said.

Scott smiled. "I am."

"Well, Logan, good luck and keep in touch with us," Jean said. She grabbed Scott's hand and started to pull him away.

Logan watched them go up the stairs and picked up his other bag, heading for the door.

"Aren't you even going to say good-bye?" 

He turned and looked at Rogue. She stared at him with her dark eyes. Her hair was pulled back, the white streak hung loose over her cheek.

"Well? Are you?" she said.

"I don't do good-byes, kid," he said.

"Then, see you later," she said with a smile.

He smiled back. "See you later." He turned back to the door, opened it, and walked out, shutting it behind him.


	8. Eight

Two Years Later

She looked at her hands and wondered how she came to have so much power. Power that she was afraid of. Power that made others afraid of her.

"Hey, kid, you daydreaming again?"

She looked up at the sound of his voice. But he wasn't leaning against the door. He wasn't anywhere in the room. It was just a memory. 

A memory. Something that she had taken for granted two years ago when she had lost her past. Now she cherished everything she went through. She memorized everyone's face and name, every little detail in every little second she lived and breathed. But the one face and name she wanted to remember and forget at the same time haunted her day and night.

Logan.

_See you later._

She was nineteen now. She was learning to survive on her own, control her powers, in Jubilee's words "Kick some ass." She was doing well in her classes and helping the younger students in their studies. She had really grown-up since she came to the school. 

She looked back at her hands, no longer afraid. 

** 

"Hey, Rogue, you got a letter." Jubilee handed the envelope to her roommate. 

Rogue quickly snatched it from her and ripped it open. A smile spread across her face as she read Logan's handwriting.

_Hey Kid, sorry for the wait. You know I hate doing this kind of stuff. But I just wanted to let you know how things were. It's strange. I was sitting in this bar a few nights ago, started talking to this guy, and we got on the topic of searching for our purpose in life. I tell him I'm on a journey to find out about my past. He looks at me like I'm crazy or maybe it's from the shots we had just finished, who knows? Anyway, he looks at me and says, "What about your future?" Now I_ _look at him funny and he says, "The past is the past. You should be on a journey towards your future." Well, kid, that got me thinking. I've been searching for two years and I think I forgot a long time ago what exactly I was searching for. I hope things at the school are good. Cause some trouble for me, alright? Logan_

"From Logan?" Jubilee said as she sat down next to Rogue on the bed. "I can tell by that sappy smile."

Rogue put the letter back in the envelope. "I'm just excited to get a letter, that's all. It's been almost four months since I heard from him."

"So, what did he say?" asked Jubilee. "Is he coming back anytime soon?"

"He didn't say," Rogue said, "but I got this feeling that he might be."

"Is it that weird connection you got with him? You know, when you touched him?"

"I just know," Rogue said with a smile.

** 

Scott and the Professor entered the hospital and was greeted by a female doctor. She was dressed in scrubs and her brown hair was tied back in a ponytail.

"I'm Dr. Bennington," she said. "I'm glad you could make it on such short notice."

"We came as soon as we got the message," the Professor said. "Can we see her?"

"In a moment, but I think I should tell you what caused us to summon you here," Dr. Bennington said.

"Go ahead," said the Professor.

The doctor reached for a folder and pulled out some brain scans. "This is Zoey's brain activity when she was first brought here two years ago. Minimum brain activity, but over the past few weeks, we've been getting these." She pulled out another scan. "These lines indicate brain activity and as you can see, it's been very heavy."

Both Scott and the Professor looked over the materials.

"What does this mean?" Scott asked.

"It means that Zoey is awake," Dr. Bennington said.

"How is that possible?" said Scott. "She's still laying in bed, in a coma."

"That's what we don't understand," Dr. Bennington said. Just then, her beeper went off. "Excuse me, but I have to take this call."

Scott turned to the Professor. "Professor, do you have any idea what's going on?" He watched as the Professor moved towards a room. They went inside and saw Zoey in the bed. The only noise came from the machines surrounding the room.

"She's conscious," the Professor said, "but I can't seem to communicate with her."

"Is she communicating with anyone?" 

The Professor waited for a moment. "Yes."

** 

John walked down the hospital's hallway just in time to see Scott Summers and the Professor get on the elevator with a doctor. He hid from their view and watched as the doors shut behind them. He wondered if they would have recognized him anyway. He had let his dark hair grow out and his eyes had only become darker, almost black. He wore the long black coat he had received as a gift. A gift from his new family. 

As John went to Zoey's room, a voice appeared inside his head. "John." It was the Professor. "Where are you going?" He shook his head to get rid of the voice. "John." He was still there.

"Leave him alone." Zoey. It was a comfort to hear her voice, saving him.

A moment passed and it was quiet again. John made it to Zoey's room and closed the door. He took a seat next to her body and grabbed her hand. 

"Hey, Zoey." But he did not move his lips.

"Hey, fire boy." But she did not move at all.

** 

"I hope we keep in touch," Dr. Bennington said. "Zoey doesn't get many visitors."

"Does she get any visitors at all?" asked the Professor.

They were in the main lobby on the first floor of the hospital building. 

"On occasion, you and Mr. Summers, but no one else," said Dr. Bennington. "Wait. I take that back. Over the past few weeks, a young man has been in her room. He said he was a close friend of hers."

"The same weeks that her brain activity started to grow?" asked the Professor.

The doctor frowned. "Why, yes, I believe so."

"Does this young man have dark eyes and hair? John, that's his name," the Professor said.

As the Professor and the doctor spoke, Scott noticed a group of young men in a corner. They were dressed in long black coats. He eyed them suspiciously. They looked back at him. Scott sensed that trouble was on its way.

"Professor, we need to get out of here," he said.

But, it was too late. The group formed a circle around Scott and the Professor. Scott reached up to his visor just as a bolt of energy came flying towards them. He fought back with a red beam, knocking down one.

The Professor looked up to see John approaching them. "John!" But as soon as John saw him, he turned the other direction and fled. The Professor looked back at Scott and saw him stumbling from being outnumbered by the men in black coats.

"Lets go!" Another man in a long coat appeared. His eyes were red and his hair fell over them. He took out a card and a surge of energy connected with it. He threw the card towards the Professor and Scott.

A blast of light blinded them for a moment and when it was gone, so were the men in black coats.

** 

"Rumor has it that John was at the hospital visiting Zoey," Bobby said to Rogue and Jubilee at dinner. "There was some trouble too with other mutants."

Rogue frowned at the thought of their lost friend. "Was he okay? John, I mean."

Bobby shrugged. "Whenever there's trouble, there's John, so who knows?"

"He was your friend too, Bobby," Rogue said.

"Yeah, until he left us for dead when Zoey went crazy," said Bobby.

"Stop it," Jubilee said gently. "It's already tense around here. The last thing we need is you two getting into a stupid fight."

"Fine." Rogue got up from her seat and left the dining hall. She sighed and walked down the hallway towards the main lobby when she sensed something, someone.

Logan.

She turned and there he was, coming down the stairs. He was dressed in jeans and a flannel shirt. She smiled and ran to him. He caught her and they wrapped their arms around each other.

"Welcome home, Logan," she said.

__


End file.
